Donald M. Scheef wrote:Now that a photo is available, I can provide some more information about GHQ's AC110, Dornier 17:
The thin aft fuselage, bulbous crew section, and radial engines identify this as a Do 17Z.
Agreed. Looks like a Z model to my eye as well.
- "Common" is relative. GHQ's model represents only about 520 aircraft.
Not quite sure about that.
The Z2 was the most produced variant of the Do-17. It was used extensively by the Luftwaffe during the Polish and French campaigns, the Battle of Britain, and Operation Barbarossa on the Eastern Front. It was also operated by Finland. So "common" might be a reasonable term for the Z2 sub-variant, at least for post- Spanish Civil War through winter of 1941 combat.
My information on the Z models puts the total at more than 700 units. I believe the Z production numbers went about like this:
- Dornier factory at Oberpfaffenhofen: about 420 aircraft
(Outside Munich. I saw it in 1979, again in about 1992. I believe the factory is no longer producing aircraft, but the village is the center of German aerospace research.)
- Henschel (all factories): about 320 aircraft (Some at Hamburg, not sure about the rest)
Compare this to over 1600 earlier-model Do 17s, over 2100 of the larger Do 217, over 3600 of the Ju 88, and over 7000 of the He 111.
Regarding the earlier models of the Do-17, the next most common, the -17E, only saw about 325 built. So the -17Z was the most common variant.
As to the Do-217, the Ju-88 and the He-111, you are of course quite correct. They were in production longer, and had higher total numbers. Do-17 production terminated by the end of 1940. It was a prominent bomber in the Luftwaffe up through about the end of 1941. From that point on it was not particularly common.
Or so I understand. Could be mistaken. Not exactly my area of expertise.
-Mark